Chapter 1

To become a Washington insider, you had to learn how to play the game and no one played it better than Callie Wheeler, until one day, the game played her.

Chapter 1

Wednesday August 3, 2011

Eric Sanders peered through the scope affixed to the top of his government issued McMillan TAC-338 sniper rifle and pulled his jacket lapel closer to his mouth. He steadied the weapon on his right shoulder as his index finger unconsciously tapped the trigger every few seconds like a lion ready to pounce on its prey. The thumb from his left hand pressed down on the talk button of the black Motorola walkie-talkie strapped to his uniform.

“Not sure I can get a clean look even if there is somebody out there, Captain,” Sanders said without ever taking his eye off the scope. “Can we do anything about the crowd? This is nuts.”

The crowd he was referring to began lining up as soon as word spread of the hearing that would begin within the hour. Traffic on the street was at a standstill mostly due to a combination of the pedestrian gridlock surrounding the Hart Senate Office Building and the usual Washington D.C. morning commute. From the few who had slept on the sidewalk, to the thousands who had arrived on the streets of the Capitol before the crack of dawn, each one of them had hoped to secure one of the precious few seats inside the hearing room. Their goal on this sweltering hundred plus degree summer morning was to be present at what the USA Today called “The most important twenty-four hours since the Tea Party at Boston Harbor.” The morning editorial of the Washington Post wrote that the events in the Senate today were, “as crucial for the country as any testimony since Watergate,” while the New York Times labeled the witness at the center of the firestorm, “the most controversial private sector figure in American history.”

On the steps of the east entrance, all of the major news networks jockeyed for position while bloggers who were sprinkled amongst the crowd, peppered their laptops with real time updates for their websites, live from the eye of the storm. Meanwhile, a few hundred feet above the ground, snipers, like Eric Sanders, were scattered along the rooftops surveying both Constitution Avenue and 2nd Street for any suspicious activity that had been anticipated by both local and federal law enforcement.

Mixed in among the mass of people were two Middle-Eastern looking men, one dressed in faded blue jeans and wearing a Kansas City Royals tee-shirt, the other in black dockers and a blue Nike golf shirt. They searched in vain for the witness they were hired to silence, but soon realized, as did the rest of the gawkers in the crowd, that she was nowhere to be found.

Having arrived at the Central Hearing Room through an underground walkway that connected the two Senate office buildings, Callie Wheeler was very much aware of the national gossip fodder she had suddenly become. Dressed in all white including her Jimmy Choo heels, Callie was the portrait of tranquility as she sat at the witness table next to her attorney, Miles Goodman. A veteran jurist of more than thirty years, the fifty-five year old Goodman came straight out of central casting complete with the light brown hair and youthful features that made him look twenty years younger. On the draped table in front of them were two microphones, four drinking glasses and two pitchers of water. To Callie’s left, a bay of television cameras pointed straight at her recording her every move, while behind her, the room slowly began to fill to capacity. The retractable brown walls had been moved to accommodate the overwhelming press requests and extra chairs were laid out due to the great demand in the back of the room. On a normal day, the hearing room hosted a touch above 300 people, but as of twenty-four hours ago, everyone involved with the United States Congress knew this would not be anywhere near a normal day.

“Did you want me to tell them that you’re planning on making an opening statement?” Miles Goodman said in barely a whisper into his client’s ear.

“I’d rather keep the b******s guessing.”

“You’re the client,” Goodman said, “but you know they’re not gonna’ be happy.”

“Like I give a s**t. F**k ‘em.”

Seated on the “U” shaped dais at the front of the room were twenty-six United States Senators, twenty-one men and five women. The Committee on Lobbying Affairs had broken down along party lines with thirteen democrats seated on the left and the thirteen republicans on the right. Of all the committees in Congress, none could be considered less appealing than COLA, but it did have its substantial perks which is why its membership was packed with the leaders of each party. The majority of the Senators present had made the rounds on early morning television, strategically placing themselves in interviews that were sure to be seen by their constituents on a day when Congress would be the focus of the national news cycle. A few of the more prominent among them were huddled together behind the platform, occasionally peeking over their shoulders at Callie and her attorney. Shortly after their impromptu strategy session had broken up, Chairman Lester Rice, a thirty-two year veteran of the Senate, gaveled the morning hearing to order.

“Ms. Wheeler, on behalf of this committee, I wanted to welcome you and thank you for appearing before us today. We understand that agreeing to testify could not have been an easy decision for you to make, but we appreciate your choosing to help our committee, especially on such short notice.”

Callie, as always, looked as if she was better suited for a catwalk than a Senatorial proceeding. Having just turned twenty-nine years old, Callie knew she would only get one shot at this and seemed intent on making the most of the opportunity, regardless of how messy it got.

“Eye contact…eye contact,” Callie said, reminding herself aloud as Rice continued with his instructions.

“Ms. Wheeler, each Senator will ask you questions for a period of five minutes and it will continue that way until such time as we determine your testimony has concluded,” Rice said, “Do you have any questions?”

Callie sat elegantly, exuding confidence as she reached for the microphone that was situated closer to Goodman and slowly moved it in front of her.

“Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I wanted to thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. As you know, my testimony here is not without controversy. Nevertheless, I feel it is my duty to address this body and I do so against the advice of counsel.”

The room fell eerily silent as everyone focused their attention on Callie Wheeler. As she paused to gather herself and milk the moment, the crackle of the court reporter’s stenograph was the only noise that could be heard throughout the room.

“My experiences on Capitol Hill have taught me that things are never quite what they seem. When I think back on my almost six years in Washington, I recognize that my only desire was to help those less fortunate. Instead, I became an obscenely wealthy and powerful woman, while those I tried to help are no better off today than they were before I began.”

Miles Goodman placed his hand on top of Callie’s microphone and carefully whispered in her ear.

“Callie, I’ve got to tell you again, that this is not a good idea. I think if you invoke your fifth amendment privilege, you’ll be protected and as your attorney, I strongly advise you to do so before saying another word.”

Callie shook her head and stared at Goodman’s hand, which was still on the mic, before looking back at him.

“Miles, you’ve got to trust me…now please...”

Goodman reluctantly removed his hand. “Callie you’re making a huge mistake. Be very careful,” Goodman said in a voice too low for the digital recording devices in the room to pick up. He pulled back from the microphone and gently shook his head. Callie looked at her attorney and smiled trying her best to assure him it would all work out okay.

From the left side of the dais, Senator Wilbur Lank, a seven term Democrat from Tennessee, interrupted the proceedings.

“Mr. Chairman, I was not informed that the witness would be making any opening remarks. It is our usual protocol, is it not, for a witness to make us aware of any opening statements they wish to make and provide us beforehand, with a copy of their remarks.”

“Nor was I, Mr. Chairman.” Charles Shulman, a four term Democratic Senator from New Jersey, echoed Lank’s sentiments and did so with his usual dramatic flare. Shulman was someone who would most appropriately be described as ornery on his best day and this particular one was not shaping up to be all that good. His mood reflected that. “To be quite honest with you, it is a massive breach of committee protocol and I believe sanctions against this witness, may be in order.”

Callie, aware of the tumult in front of her, continued on, deriving great pleasure from the obvious discomfort she had caused. “The things I have done on Capitol Hill and elsewhere, are beyond description. I am not proud of what I've done, but I do take full responsibility for my actions.” Callie lifted her head and gazed intently at the lawmakers in front of her. ”However, I believe I may be the only one in this room to do so.”

Chairman Rice interrupted her and peered down at Callie from over his bifocals. “Ms. Wheeler, we were led to believe you would not be making any opening remarks.”

Callie was in complete control and seemed to gain strength from the simmering tension in the room. As she leaned in closer to the microphone, the still photographers clicked away at a frantic pace while the television cameras zoomed in on her face which seemed to eat up the lens every time she came in contact with it.

“Well, I changed my mind.”

Callie confidently finished her words then pushed back from the microphone to let her last comment sink in. The chamber erupted with noise, most of it coming from the Senators who took offense to her brazen disregard for their arbitrary and ever changing rules. Chairman Rice gaveled the room quiet before the hearing spun out of control. Senator Mike Gorman, a Democrat from Colorado, had already served four terms in the Senate after being elected to Congress at a mere thirty years old. His perfect hair, pristine teeth and expensive suits were his trademark and Gorman used this occasion to bump his sagging poll numbers in an upcoming race no one thought would be close.

“In light of these events, Mr. Chairman, I reiterate that I think this session needs to be held in private. As you know, I’ve been against this entire exercise and am on record with that opinion. However, if we are going to move ahead with this, the least we can do is clear the room and save the public the embarrassment.”

Senator Gerald Macklin, a six term Republican from Illinois, was also unhappy. Macklin had watched his years in the Senate expand along with his waistline, tipping the scales during his most recent physical, at close to four hundred pounds. “I would agree, Mr. Chairman, I think it's best we clear the entire chamber at this time"”

“I am not sure what good an open hearing does for the people of this great country,” Senator Lank said, interrupting Senator Macklin.

The noise in the hearing room grew louder as the onlookers in the gallery began talking amongst themselves while a number of senators continued to interrupt. Senator Shulman, speaking loudly into his microphone, addressed the hearing once again. “Mr. Chairman, I would like to raise my objection to the witness’s entire testimony before this committee and would also like the official record to reflect my opinion as to how ridiculous I feel her testimony is.”

Chairman Rice pounded the gavel on his podium. “Quiet, please.” Callie watched intently as Senator Shulman covered his mic and leaned in to whisper something to Chairman Rice, but before he could say a word, Callie rattled their cages one more time.

“Mr. Chairman, I would like to continue.”

Senators interrupted and the gallery, just as before, was abuzz with chatter. Chairman Rice pounded the gavel loudly. “Quiet. We cannot proceed like this. We need quiet.”

Senator Shulman was at it again as he leaned over to whisper something into the chairman’s ear. “Lester, you need to postpone this. I am telling you now, this b***h is hell on wheels. We need to get control of this situation and I mean right now.”

Chairman Rice nodded his head in agreement, as Shulman talked in his ear. Before he could finish, Rice was already on it. “Ms. Wheeler, would you be willing to postpone your testimony a day or two so we can sort out a few procedural details?”

Goodman quickly placed his hand on Callie's microphone and offered her some good advice drawn from his three decades of work. “Callie, listen to me. Take him up on his offer and play ball with these guys. They do not f**k around. As your attorney, I am advising you in the strongest possible terms to say, yes. These people will make your life a living hell. Just say, yes.”

Callie slid her lustrous black hair over her left shoulder, smiled and slowly moved Goodman’s hand off the microphone.

“No sir, Mr. Chairman, I would not. I will testify today and no other day. If you like, feel free to subpoena me, but I am quite confident that I'm the last person Congress wants to hear from.”

In the back right corner of the chamber, Mike Ferguson sat quietly. More than any other person in attendance, he knew all too well about Callie Wheeler. The seasoned litigators who sat on the committee had media pundits wondering aloud how Callie would hold up against their intense rounds of questioning. Mike Ferguson knew better and couldn't help but feel bad for the Senators sitting in front of her. As he thought about the long day they had ahead of them, the tracings of a smile began to form on his face.

Author's Note

First chapter-will post more if there's any interest, but I am very interested in any feedback